Paper clip index tab



Dec. 28, 1965 M. CHASE 3,225,469

PAPER CLIP INDEX TAB Filed Aug. 2, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR MARSTON CHASE BY j 'EATTORNEY Dec. 28, 1965 M. CHASE 3,225,469

PAPER CLIP INDEX TAB Filed Aug. 2, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 2| FIG. 22 F I623 INVENTOR MARSTON CHASE BY I H624 W a W ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,225,469 PAPER CLIP INDEX TAB Marston Chase, Washington Bldg, Apt. 618, Arlington Towers, Arlington, Va. Filed Aug. 2, 1961, Ser. No. 128,824 3 Claims. (Cl. 40-23) The present invention relates to indexing a sheet or sheets and more particularly to the provision of an index tab for application on a conventional wire paper clip so that the wire paper clip may perform its usual function and with the index tab may perform the functions of serving as a handle and identifying a single sheet or a plurality of sheets secured by the paper clip, the present application being a continuation in part of my prior application, Serial No. 780,072 filed December 12, 1958.

Heretofore, paper clips have been used for securing a plurality of paper sheets or the like together and index tabs have been used to identify a particular sheet. However, the provision of a readily applied and removed index tab for temporarily identifying sheets has not been satisfactorily solved with the previously known structures. Some attempts have been made to use a paper clip with an identifying index tab thereon but such attempts have changed the characteristics of the paper clips interfering with their normal use. The index tabs previously used have not been of a type which could be readily applied to and removed from paper clips and were not of a type which would readily render the paper clip suitable as an index tab.

An object of the present invention is to provide an index tab sheath which can be applied to and removed from a conventional wire paper clip while the clip remains in position on a sheet or while the paper clip is separated therefrom.

A further object is to provide an index tab sheath for application to a paper clip and which is resilient and takes advantage of the resiliency of the paper clip for secure retention of the index tab sheath without damaging the index tab sheath or the paper clip.

A still further object is to provide a single size index tab sheath which can be used with more than one size of paper clips including conventional No. 1 and No. 3 sizes even though the clips are made of different sizes of wire.

A further object is to provide an index tab sheath which engages the parallel portions of any of the U-shape sections of a paper clip and in which a single size index tab sheath can be used on any one of the U-shape sections of a paper clip and be effectively retained by the construction of the index tab sheath.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an identifying index tab which can be readily applied to and removed from conventional paper clips.

Another object is to provide a novel combination of index tab and paper clip which will perform the functions of the paper clip and the index tab and have a further advantage of preventing damage to paper on which the combination is applied.

Other and further objects will be apparent as the description proceeds and upon reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG.1 is an enlarged isometric of a conventional paper clip having a removable index tab in the form of a flat tubular sheath mounted on the intermediate connecting U-section of the paper clip;

FIG. 2, a longitudinal section of the index tab and fragment of a paper clip taken substantially on section line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3, an isometric of another form of index tab;

3,225,469 Patented Dec. 28, 1965 FIG. 4, a section taken substantially on line 4-4'0f FIG. 3;

FIG. 5, a plan view of a further modification of an index tab according to the present invention;

FIG. 6, a longitudinal section taken substantially on line 6-6 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7, a plan view of a still further form of index tab which is U-shape in plan and of trough shape crosssection;

FIG. 8, a transverse section taken substantially on line 8-8 of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9, a perspective of a further modification having a tubular sheath with a detent for engaging the paper clip and an extension for facilitating the insertion of the paper clip into the index tab;

FIG. 10, a longitudinal section taken substantially on line 10-10 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11, a perspective of a plurality of sheets with conventional wire paper clips having index tabs of the present invention applied thereon;

FIG. 12, a plan view of a further modified index ta mounted on a U-section of a paper clip showing the dimpled detent face thereof and showing the gripping of the parallel leg portions of the U-section;

FIG. 13, a longitudinal section taken substantially on line 13-13 of FIG. 12 showing the nipple detent preventing accidental removal;

FIG. 14, a further modification showing an index tab sheath made from tubular material closed in a pointed configuration at one end while retaining its tubular circular characteristics at the other end;

FIG. 15, an end view of the open circular end of the index tab sheath of FIGURE 14;

FIG. 16, a section taken substantially on line 16-16 of FIGURE 14 showing the index tab sheath thereof prior to application to a paper clip;

FIG. 17, a plan View of the index tab sheath of FIG- URES 14 to 16 applied to a paper clip showing the angular displacement of the legs of the U-section of the paper clip;

FIG. 17A, a longitudinal section taken substantially on line 17A-17A of FIG. 17 showing how the nipple detent is brought into operative relation to the U-section of the paper clip on which it is mounted;

FIG. 18, an edge view of a further modification showing a frame on an index tab sheath for retaining one or more removable index cards;

FIG. 19, a longitudinal section taken substantially on line 19-19 of FIGURE 18 showing the frame structure for receiving one or more identifying cards and showing the opening for easy application and removal thereof;

FIG. 20, an edge elevation of a modified form of the index card tab retaining sheath of FIGURES l8 and 19 showing the tag end receiving frame at an angle to the paper clip and its receiving sheath;

FIG. 21, a plan view of another modification of index tab sheath for retaining an index card of indeterminate size or shape thereon;

FIG. 22, an edge elevation thereof;

FIG. 23, an edge elevation of a modified form of index tab sheath for retaining a tag card at an angle to the paper clip; and,

FIG. 24, a perspective showing some of the modified forms of index tab sheaths applied to cards or groups of papers.

Briefly, the present invention includes the provision of an index tab sheath for removable application to a conventional wire paper clip of the type having a pair of U-shape sections with one U-shape section nested within the other and with their bight portions in spaced relation and a connecting U-section connecting one leg operative position.

of one U-shape section to the opposite leg of the other U-shape section. An index tab sheath according to the present invention is provided for mounting on any U- section of a paper clip even though paper clips vary in size and the wire from which the paper clips are made vary in size. In one form the index tab comprises a flattened tubular flexible resilient sheath shaped to receive a U-section of the wire paper clip, said sheath being closed at one end to engage the bight portion of the U-section on which the sheath is mounted and being open at its other end for reception of the U-section of the paper clip. The side edges and closed end of said sheath index tab are of trough shape. The trough shaped portion effectively engages the U-section and particularly the parallel legs thereof whereby the resiliency of the material of the sheath and/or of the paper clip retains the index tab on the paper clip.

Modifications embodying the present invention of sheath index tabs which make use of the peripheral trough shape of the resilient body are shown with some including a flaring entrance portion facilitating the insertion of the paper clip in the sheath index tab.

One modification of the invention is made from a cylindrical tube of a length sufiicient to engage a substantial portion of the parallel legs of a U-section of a paper clip. The size of the tubular sheath is suflicient to engage the outside surfaces of the parallel legs of the U-section on which the sheath is to be mounted. However, the actual size and the resiliency of the material is such that a substantial force is applied by the inner portions of the sheath against the parallel leg portions of the U-sections tending to bend the previously parallel legs of the U-section at an angle converging in a direction away from the bight portion thereof and additionally retaining the sheath on the wire clip. In addition a dimple may be pressed into one or more surfaces of the tubular sheath spaced away from the open end a suflicient distance so that the nipple formed thereby will lie within the bight portion of the U-section of the paper clip and extend into a plane spaced from the opposite inner surface of the sheath less than the diameter of the wire of the paper clip thereby providing a semi-positive acting detent effectively retaining the index tab sheath on the U-section even though the index tab sheath and the paper clip to which it is applied have considerable variations in dimensions including variations in the wire sizes of the paper clips.

Upon more specific reference to the drawing, an index tab is shown applied to a conventional resilient wire paper clip of the type having a pair of U-shape sections 16 and 17 with one section 16 nested within the other section. 17 and lying in a common plane. A connecting U-section 18 connects one leg of the one section 16 to the opposite leg of the other section 17 thereby completing the paper clip.

In the form of the invention shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 11 the index tab 15 comprises an integral one piece flattened tubular resilient sheath made of sheet material such as resilient metal, resilient plastics or the like and includes a front panel 19 and a rear panel 20 with said sheath being closed at its one end 21 and being open at its other end to permit the insertion of the intermediate connecting U-section 18 of a paper clip into the index tab sheath of the present invention.

It will be noted that the side edges and the enclosed end 21 are of trough shape and the inner surfaces of the panels 19 and 20 are arranged to resiliently engage the resilient wire of the connecting U-section 18 of the paper clip thereby eflectively retaining the index tab in To insert the connecting U-section 18 of the paper clip into the sheath, the front and rear panels of the sheath are separated at the open end of the tubular sheath 15 by the insertion of the connecting U-section of the paper clip, it being evident that the sheath may be removed from the paper clip by relative longitudinal movement of the paper clip from the sheath in the opposite direction from insertion.

To facilitate the insertion of the connecting U-section 18 of the paper clip into the index tab sheath 15, the trough-shaped peripheral edge of the sheath may be cut away by a diagonal cut from one side edge to the open end of the tubular sheath as shown by the V-shaped notch 22, the convex corners 23 resulting therefrom being spaced apart substantially the diameter of the wire of the paper clip. In applying the index tab sheath a U-section 18 of the paper clip, the convex corners 23 of the sheath are caused to engage the wire of the U-section 18 and the sheath and clip are relatively moved separating the front and rear panels 19 and 20 of the sheath. The U-section 18 of the paper clip is moved completely inside of the sheath with the bight portion of the U-section 18 engaging the closed end of the sheath, thereby completing the assembly of the paper clip and index tab for use. It will be apparent that the index tab sheath engages a substantial length of the parallel legs of the U-section 18 and the resiliency of the paper clip assists in retaining the index tab sheath in position. It is also evident that an index tab sheath can be applied directly to the U-section 16 or U-section 17 and to all three U-sections of a single paper clip if desired.

It will be evident that the index tab sheath 15 can be applied while the paper clip is attached to papers to identify a particular set of papers and the index tab may be removed after the use for the index tab no longer exists.

It will be noted that suitable indicia such as a letter 24 shown as a capital A may be applied to the front or the back panel or to both panels and distinctive coloring may be used as shown in FIG. 11 where the index tabs 15 are shown as red, blue and green. Coloring, lettering, numbering and/or words may be used on the tab for distinctive identification.

In FIG. 1, for convenience of illustration, the free ends of the free legs of U-shaped sections 16 and 17 are shown as terminating short of the open end of the sheath 15 but it will be evident that such free ends of the legs may extend substantially to the open end of the sheath. In using the combination of the sheath tab 15 and the paper clip, the edge of the open end of the sheath serves as a stop as shown in FIG. 11 preventing the application of the index tab sheath and paper clip combinationv beyond the position of the open end of the sheath against the edge of the paper preventing the possibility of the free ends of the legs of the U-shaped sections 16 and 17 from tearing the paper upon application or removal of the paper clip when the sheath extends substantially to the free ends of the wire of the U-shape sections 16 and 17. In paper clips made by various manufacturers there are variations in the lengths of the free ends of the wires of the free legs of U-sections 16 and 17, but the present invention automatically accommodates for some variation by the resilience of the sheath and clip. FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate a modified index tab sheath including a panel 25 having trough-shaped sides 26, 27 and a trough-shaped end 28, the trough being integrally formed from the material of the panel 25 extending rearwardly of and behind the panel. The free edges of the troughs are provided with a flaring lip 29, the troughs being of greater than semi-circular cross-section to effectively embrace and be retained on a U-section of a paper clip. It will be noted that the trough is discontinuous at notches 30 and 31, the inner ends of the troughs 26 and 27 terminating at said notches 30 and 31 with said ends providing shoulders which contact the curving portion of the U-section of a paper clip to provide a positive interengagement which prevents accidental removal.

It will be noted that a numeral 32 is provided on the front face of. panel 25 and such face may be colored andor provided with other additional information as desire The modification shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 includes a front panel 33 surrounded by a continuous trough having side sections 34, 35 and a curved section 36 corresponding to the shape of a U-section of a paper clip. Identifying indicia AB is provided on the front of the panel 33. It will be noted that the trough sections open at an acute angle to the plane of the panel 33 and the free outwardly flaring edge 37 of the trough provides for ease of applying the index tab to a paper clip.

The modification of FIGS. 7 and 8 comprises a U- shaped body having a trough shape cross section with the trough opening on the inner periphery of the legs and bight portion of the U-shaped body. The said body includes legs 38, 39 and a connecting bight portion 40. Since the trough-shaped cross section is substantially the same throughout the length of the U-shaped body, the cross section as seen in FIG. 8 indicates the structure. Each edge of the trough is provided with an outwardly flaring lip 41 serving as a funnel to assist in the application of the identifying tab to the paper clip. It will be evident that the index tab may be suitably colored or otherwise marked for the purpose of identification.

The modification shown in FIGS. 9 and includes a front panel 42 and a rear panel 43 connected by a peripheral U-shaped trough including side edge sections 44, 45 and a curved end section 46. It will be noted that the rear panel 43 projects beyond the unattached end of the panel 42 thereby providing a shelf which is of assistance in the application of the index tab to a paper clip since such extension serves to guide the bight portion into the open end of the index tab sheath. Although the front panel 42 is shown of concave-convex shape for retention of the tab in the manner shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the panel 42 may be substantially flat and the sheath may be retained solely by a detent 48 extending inwardly from the rear panel 43 so that the detent 48 will engage the inner periphery of the U-section on which the sheath is applied. Where positive retention is not desired the detent 48 may have a rounded end and engage the wire of the paper clip so as to be cammed to inoperative position by a pulling action for removal of the sheath from the paper clip. Suitable indicia including color is provided on either or both faces for identification. It will be evident that the sheath of FIGS. 9 and 10 may be readily removed from the paper clip by inserting a tool such as a screw driver in the sheath and deflecting the detent 48 permitting removal of the sheath. It is preferred to have the detent be of a nature to cam under the wire of the U-section 18 of the paper clip as illustrated. It will also be evident that the open end of the sheath may be flared to assist in positioning on a paper clip.

The upper wall 42 is preferably flared at the open end of the sheath as shown at 42A, FIGS. 9 and 10, to assist in applying the index tab sheath to a paper clip.

FIGURE 11 shows the application of the index tab sheath on paper clips attached to single sheets or plurality of sheets of paper for the purpose of indexing and arranging such sheets of paper. It will be evident that such index tab sheaths can be applied either before the paper clip is applied to the paper or applied after the paper clip is applied to the paper and can be removed from time to time and replaced with other index tab sheaths as desired thereby avoiding a problem existing with known index tabs.

Upon reference to FIGURES 12 and 13 a further modification is shown to include a sheath made of plastic closed at one end and of a dimension to snugly grip a U- section 50 of a paper clip. The sheath comprises a fiattened tubular member having a generally flat side wall 51 and having its opposite side wall 52 provided with a dimple 53 pressed therein providing a nipple detent in the space between the legs and connecting bight portion of the U-section 50 of a paper clip. It will be noted that the inner nipple surface of the dimple 53 is closer to the inner surface of the wall 51 than the diameter of the wire forming the U-section 50. It will be noted that the closed end 54 is located a substantial distance from the open end of the index tab sheath by a distance substantially greater than the radius of curvature of the bight portion of the U-section 50 thereby assuring that substantial contact exists between the index tab sheath and the U-section retaining the sheath against angular displacement.

Upon reference to FIGURES 14 to 17A inclusive, a further modification of the index tab sheath is made from a cylindrical tube of plastic material which is cut to a pointed shape at one end 55 and the material forming such pointed end is connected together as by heat sealing a thermoplastic material of which the resilient cylindrical tube is formed, the sealing occurring along edges 65 and 66 between the end 55 and intermediate edge locations 56 and 57, the remainder of the sheath being the normal cylindrical portion of the tube from which the sheath is formed. The shape of such sheath is determined by the connections along edges 65, 66 between point 55 and points 56 and 57 respectively to make a generally wedge shaped longitudinal cross section as shown in FIGURE 16. The length of the tubular sheath is substantially greater than the radius of curvature of the bight portion of U-section 58 on which the sheath is applied as shown in FIGURES 17 and 17A. The open end of the sheath 59 is shown in circular form which changes to a substantially flattened form near the pointed end 55. A dimple 66 is formed on one side wall 61 of the tubular index tab sheath and the nipple formed thereby projects toward the opposite wall 62 thereof a distance suflicient that the nipple formed by dimple is spaced from the wall 62 less than the diameter of the wire of the paper clip when the index tab sheath is mounted on the U-section 58 as shown in FIG. 17A thereby assuring a detent action between the nipple formed by dimple 60 and the paper clip.

Because of the circular shape of the open end 59 of the index tab sheath, the application of a U'section of a paper clip is simplified since the rounded bight of the U- section can be inserted into the open end 59 at almost any angle to the axis of the sheath and almost any angle to the plane defined by edges and 66 and the shape and resiliency of the plastic material thereof will provide a cam action causing the sheath and the paper clip to assume the final correct position shown in FIGURES 17 and 17A. The side edges of the sheath in its operative position of FIGURES 17 and 17A causes the side edges 63 and 64 to be biased toward the legs of the U-section 58 with sufiicient force to partially displace the normally parallel legs 58 of the paper clip from the normal dotted line position toward one another to the solid line position shown in FIG. 17 thereby producing a converging relation of the legs and additionally assuring retention of the index tab sheath on a paper clip. It will also be noted that the edge portions 65 and 66 forming the closed pointed end are adapted to engage the bight portion of the paper clip limiting the insertion thereof and providing ease of removal. Also this positioning assures that the dimple forming nipple detent 60 will lie within the U- section of the paper clip.

The pointed end 55 of the index tab sheath may serve as a pointer to designate a particular row or column of a sheet to which a paper clip with the index tab sheath is attached.

It will be evident that the index tab sheaths may be formed by any suitable means such as by molding or the like to obtain the desired shape.

Upon reference to FIGURES 18 and 19 a tubular sheath 67 is provided with an inwardly extending nipple 68 and attached to the closed end of the tubular sheath 67 is a frame which includes a base 69, a closed end 70, a top 71, and an open end 72, a groove being formed in the base 69, end 70, top 71 and registering with the open- 7 ing 72 for receiving one or more tag cards through the open end 72 by a sliding action. With this index tab sheath and frame it is possible to apply considerably more information by means of the tag cards than could be applied by a simple index tab sheath such as those previously described.

A modification is shown in FIG. 20 to include a tubular sheath 73 and a frame 74 arranged at an angle to provide a convenient angle for ease of reading.

Upon reference to FIGURES 21 and 22, a tubular index tab sheath 74 is provided with a dimple 75 forming a detent nipple and is arranged to be applied on a paper clip in the manner previously described. Extending from the closed end of such tubular sheath 74 are a pair of substantially fiat extensions 76 and 77 which are biased together as shown with sufiicient force to effectively retain a tag card applied therebetween, it being noted that extension 77 is of greater length than extension 76 so that an edge of a card can be applied to the projecting end of extension 77 and such extension moved away a sufiicient distance from extension 76 to provide for ready insertion or removal of the tag card 78 shown in dotted lines.

In FIGURE 23 a modification includes a tubular sheath like element 79 having a dimple 80 similar to the dimples 53 and 60 previously described but extension plates 81 and 82 project at an obtuse angle from the closed end of the sheath 79 to receive a tag card of the type shown in dotted lines in FIGURES 21 and 22.

The various index tab sheaths of FIGURES 12 to 23 are shown applied to index cards and or groups of papers or cards in various combinations in FIGURE 24 thereby illustrating the utility of the invention applied to paper normally manipulated by clerical and professional workers. It will be apparent that the tubular sheath elements of FIGS. 19 to 23 may take the form of the sheaths in the other figures but to avoid unnecessary prolixity a showing and description of all these modifications within the scope of the invention are omitted.

It will be evident that the colors of the various index tab sheaths and letter or number identifications can be applied directly thereto to provide for different identifying characteristics and the index tab sheaths can be applied in varying combinations to various U-sections of a paper clip. It will be evident that one size of index tab sheath is adaptable for application to and retention on the U-sections of various sizes of paper clips including various sizes of wire in difi'erent paper clips and including various sizes of U-sections in a single paper clip thereby avoiding the necessity of having many different sizes of index tab sheaths for use with the usual sizes of paper clips.

From the above description, it will be evident that the index tab according to the present invention can be applied directly to conventional paper clips without special tools and can be removed for reuse or can be removed when they are no longer needed while the paper clip may continue its function of securing papers together. In addition to serving as an index tab for quickly locating a particular paper or card or a particular group of papers or cards, the index tab of the present invention prevents tearing of the paper by preventing the free ends of the paper clip from contacting the paper thereby avoiding undesirable expense due to damage of valuable papers and avoiding time required for repairing damages.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof and therefore the invention is not limited by that which is illustrated in the drawing and described in the specification, but only as indicated in the accompanying claims.

What is claimed is:

1. The combination of a wire paper clip of the type having a pair of U-sections with one U-section nested within the other and with their bight portions in spaced relation, a connecting U-section extending from one leg of the one U-section to the opposite leg of the other U-section, and an index tab removably mounted on said connecting U-section, said index tab comprising an elongated sheath shaped to receive the connecting U-section, said sheath being open at one end, said sheath being of sufiicient length for embracing a substantial portion of the legs of said connecting U-section substantially to a position closely adjacent both free ends of the wire of the paper clip whereby the edges of the sheath defining the open end of the index tab will serve as a stop to limit the positioning of the paper clip on the edge of the sheet whereby the free ends of the free legs of the nested U-sections will not tear the paper upon removal of the paper clip and its index tab from the paper sheet, said sheath having at least a resilient part thereof lying within a projection of the maximum transverse cross section of said connecting U-section and displaceable to the outside of the projection of said maximum transverse cross section permitting removal of said index tab from the paper clip and reapplication to the same or a different paper clip.

2. The combination of a resilient paper clip of the type having a pair of U-sections with one U-section nested within the other and with their bight portions in spaced relation, a connecting U-section extending from one leg of the one U-section to the opposite leg of the other U- section, said connecting U-section having a bight portion and having generally straight and generally parallel legs extending from said bight portion, an index tab including a resilient tubular sheath member open at one end and closed into a substantially fiat interior condition at the other end, the length of said sheath between the open end and the closed substantially flat interior end being substantially greater than the depth of the bight portion so that a substantial portion of the sheath extends onto the generally straight generally parallel legs of the connecting U-section, to a position closely adjacent both free ends of the wire paper clip, said sheath having an internal transverse dimension adjacent the open end and in the plane of the closed substantially flat end before application to the connecting U-section less than the transverse dimension between the outsides of the legs of the connecting U-section whereby when the sheath is applied to the connecting U-section the sheath will be detachably retained by the resilient action of the legs of the connecting U-section against the portion of said sheath adjacent the open end, said sheath adjacent the open end having an internal transverse dimension less than the transverse dimension of the outsides of the legs of the connecting U-section, and the sheath will also automatically come to its correct position on the resilient wire connecting U-section with the plane of the closed substantially flat end parallel to the plane of the legs by the interengagement of the closed flat end of the tubular sheath with the bight portion of the connecting U-section.

3. The combination of a resilient paper clip of the type having a pair of U-sections with one U-section nested within the other U-section and with their bight portions in spaced relation, a connecting U-section extending from one leg of the one U-section to the opposite leg of the other U-section, said connecting U-section having a bight portion and legs extending from said bight portion in the same general direction, an index tab comprising a sheathlike body open at one end and being of a length receiving and embracing a substantial portion of the legs of the connecting U-section substantially to a position closely adjacent both free ends of the wire of the paper clip whereby the edges of the sheath defining the open end of the index tab serves as a stop limiting the positioning of the paper clip on the edge of a sheet whereby the free ends of the free legs of the pair of nested U-sections will be located so close to the edge of the sheet to which the paper clip is applied when the edges of the open end of the paper clip engage the edge of the sheet that damage to the sheet by removal of the paper clip is prevented, said body having a trough portion adjacent its periphery embracing the said connecting U-section, said trough portion efiectively retaining the index tab on the paper clip, said trough portion having at least a part thereof embracing a portion of the Wire of the connecting U-section of the paper clip within a projection of the maximum transverse cross section of the connecting U- section assuring retention of the index tab on the paper clip, said at least a part thereof being resiliently displaceable to the outside of the projection of said transverse cross section permitting removal and reapplication of said index tab from and to the paper clip Without permanent deformation of either the paper clip or the index tab.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 850,324 4/1907 Seyl 4011 875,094 12/1907 Morrell 4026 876,252 1/1908 Baker 4023 1,125,915 1/1915 Platt.

1,178,113 4/1916 Turton et a1. 12916.5

1,581,966 4/1926 Leggott 4026 1,594,118 7/1926 Ritter 129-16.5

1,868,563 7/1932 Cicourel 40330 1,931,224 10/1933 Herz 12916.5

2,055,152 9/1936 Larson 4023 2,186,508 1/ 1940 Tremmel 4023 2,597,426 5/ 1952 Aukley 4023 2,626,567 1/1953 Vogt 40--17 X 2,690,624 10/ 1954 Phillips 4011 JEROME SCHNALL, Primary Examiner.

GEORGE A. NINAS, ]R., E. V. BENHAM, Examiners. 

1. THE COMBINATION OF A WIRE PAPER CLIP OF THE TYPE HAVING A PAIR OF U-SECTIONS WITH ONE U-SECTION NESTED WITHIN THE OTHER AND WITH THEIR BIGHT PORTIONS IN SPACED RELATION, A CONNECTING U-SECTION EXTENDING FROM ONE LEG OF THE ONE U-SECTION TO THE OPPOSITE LEG OF THE OTHER U-SECTION, AND AN INDEX TAB OPPOSITE LEG OF THE OTHER CONNECTING U-SECTION, SAID INDEX TAB COMPRISING AN ELONGATED SHEATH SHAPED TO RECEIVE THE CONNECTING U-SECTION, SAID SHEATH BEING OPEN AT ONE END, SAID SHEATH BEING OF SUFFICIENT LENGTH FOR EMBRACING A SUBSTANTIAL PORTION OF THE LEGS OF SAID CONNECTING U-SECTION SUBSTANTIALLY TO A POSITION CLOSELY ADJACENT BOTH FREE ENDS OF THE WIRE OF THE PAPER CLIP WHEREBY THE EDGES OF THE SHEATH DEFINING THE OPEN END OF THE INDEX TAB WILL SERVE AS A STOP TO LIMIT THE POSITIONING OF THE PAPER CLIP ON THE EDGE OF THE SHEET WHEREBY THE FREE ENDS OF THE FREE LEGS OF THE NESTED U-SECTIONS WILL NOT TEAR THE PAPER UPON REMOVAL OF THE PAPER CLIP AND ITS INDEX TAB FROM THE PAPER SHEET, SAID SHEATH HAVING AT LEAST A RESILIENT PART THEREOF LYING WITHIN A PROJECTION OF THE MAXIMUM TRANSVERSE CROSS SECTION OF SAID CONNECTING U-SECTION AND DISPLACEABLE TO THE OUTSIDE OF THE PROJECTION OF SID MAXIMUM TRANSVERSE CROSS SECTION PERMITTING REMOVAL OF SAID INDEC TAB FROM THE PAPER CLIP AND REAPPLICATION TO THE SAME OR A DIFFERENT PAPER CLIP. 